A brutal attack

The LTTE has once again demonstrated its barbarity by directing artillery fire at a civilian target with the intention of shifting blame on the Security Forces.

Its callous disregard for the lives even of helpless patients, when it fired artillery shells at the Murunkan hospital housing pregnant mothers, should at least now make the world see the outfit for what it is - a bloodthirsty band of terrorists who will stop at nothing to achieve its utopian dream.

Its sympathisers both here and abroad who would by now be tearing their hair and gnashing their teeth had the Security Forces by some miscalculation fired on a civilian target.

Fortunately no patient was injured in the attack although the hospital suffered serious damage. Also another report said that the LTTE had directed mortar fire at the Madhu Church premises taking advantage of the "No Fire Zone" declared by the Government, in another bid to shift the blame on the Forces.

The Catholic priests at the sanctuary had confirmed the attack. The LTTE's history of course is replete with instances demonstrating its singular disregard for the lives of the people whom they claim to represent.

Innocent civilians be they patients confined to hospitals, children or pregnant mothers, mean little to the outfit for whom these merely represent collateral damage in their terror campaign.

Above all this incident goes to demonstrate the callous disregard of the LTTE for conventions of war where hospitals and places of worship are protected. Earlier too the LTTE fired artillery shells on a church killing six Security Forces men who were preparing the sanctum for the celebration of its annual feast.

What have the Human rights campaigners both here and abroad got to say about this latest attack targeting helpless patients?. Aren't these going to figure in the list of statistics that agencies like the Human Rights Watch are famous for presenting before UN bodies to place Sri Lanka in poorer light over alleged human right violations ?

True, a legitimate Government is obliged to uphold international conventions unlike a terrorist outfit not restrained by such niceties. Still, those hectoring the Government on Human rights should at least strive to get a true picture on the nature of the battle that is being waged by the Security Forces.

They should not jump into judging the Forces without making an assessment of the dirty tactics adopted by the enemy. As the fighting arm of a legitimate Government the Forces are in an unenviable position virtually having to fight with their hands tied and they have to take the rap into the bargain.

The LTTE is free to violate human rights umpteen times. What these worthies should do is temper their biased views against the Security Forces with the atrocities committed by the LTTE on innocent human beings so that a clearer picture may emerge of the ground situation.

This may help them assess the situation in a more pragmatic light and not be quick to rush to the aid agencies to smear the name of the country. The Government for its part should take steps to highlight both incidents before the international community to press for more stringent action against the LTTE.

Vanniyela Aththo

A directive issued by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to the Environment Ministry to look into the problems faced by the Veddha community is a timely one particularly in view of the emerging threats posed to their habitat by development.

The appointment of a separate director for resolving the problems faced by our local aborigines had been mooted. The project though should be pursued with care so as not to disturb the original lifestyles of our Vanniyela Aththo.

Everything should be done to preserve an important aspect of the country's heritage. Already we see dwindling traces of some our cherished cultural aspects. Such a fate should not befall our Veddha community who have become the object of deep study and research by visitors to this land.

Hence whatever that is proposed to improve the lot of the Veddha community should not touch on the fundamental aspects of their existence. A delicate balance should be struck so that the right equilibrium is maintained.

There will be those naturalists who will object to any intrusions into the lives of this unspoilt community whether solicited or otherwise. But it must be borne in mind that aborigine communities the world over had undergone much change and even assimilated with the local communities.

Here too we saw a Veddha leader given a plane ride to Dambadiva some time ago and a Veddha progeny gaining entry to a local university. Advancing civilisation of course is bound to affect the lifestyles and attitudes of indigenous communities and the Veddhas are no exception.

The secret though is not to venture outside certain bounds so that their essential identity is preserved while leaving their mark on the sands of time.